


Told You So

by MaddieandChimney



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: F/M, tw: child birth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:22:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25259908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaddieandChimney/pseuds/MaddieandChimney
Summary: When Maddie goes into labour three weeks early, Chimney blames himself after they had an argument that morning. Hen and Karen are there to force him into the delivery room.
Relationships: Maddie Buckley/Howie "Chimney" Han
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	Told You So

Chimney feels as though he’s going to throw up or burst into tears or probably both as he paces the floor of the hospital waiting room. His fists clench by his side, trying to still his shaking hands before his head snaps up and he looks at Karen walking towards them with a frown on her face, “Maddie’s asking for you.”

That only makes him feel worse because he doesn’t think he can. Quickly, he shakes his head and takes a deep breath, only stopping in his tracks because Hen grabs his arm, a confused look on her face when she looks from her wife to her best friend. It’s the way Karen is looking at him, it only forces that hatred inside of him to bubble up even more.

“Chimney, go be with your girlfriend.” This time it’s Hen, practically pushing him in the direction Karen had come from before he shakes his head. His face is pale as he takes a deep breath in a futile attempt to calm himself down.

“C-can’t, she hates me. Buck should go, someone else should go.”

“Your baby is about to be born, there’s no one else who should be in that room.” Karen rolls her eyes, reaching out for his hand and he can tell by the determination in her eyes that she’s about to drag him in there.

From the moment he had gotten the call from the other woman that he needed to get to the hospital as soon as possible, all he could think about was how he had shouted at her that morning. It was just a stupid argument because she was trying to work right up until the due date, insisting she was absolutely fine despite the fact it was a difficult pregnancy. All he had wanted was for her to finally put her feet up, especially after she had come home crying the night before after a difficult shift. And now, all he could think about was how she had burst into tears and told him to leave her alone the moment he tried to comfort her.

And he had. He had rolled his eyes in frustration and stormed out of their apartment.

“M-my fault.” He whispers, even if there’s something niggling in the back of his mind that it’s completely illogical. Maddie is thirty-seven-weeks pregnant, so he knows that the likelihood of her and the baby being fine is more likely than not. It doesn’t hurt any less to know that he could likely be the reason she’s even in labour in the first place. He had asked Karen to check on her halfway through his shift when she hadn’t answered any of his texts or phone calls. She could be stubborn to a fault, so he had tried not to think it was anything other than she was still mad at him.

Only, his mind had been whirring throughout the day, right up until the point Karen phoned and said she had found Maddie in labour and was taking her to the hospital.

“No, your daughter just wanted to make an early appearance. She’s going to be fine but you’re going to hate yourself if you miss this because you and Maddie had an argument this morning.” He flinches, yanking his hand from hers to wipe at the tears falling down his face; Karen knows, which means Maddie told her, which means Maddie was still upset enough to be thinking about how he had stormed out of the apartment and left her alone, crying.

It’s Hen who cups his face with her hands, an expression on her face that just lets him know she’s not to be messed with right then. “You need to push all those thoughts out of your head right now, okay? This is not the time to beat yourself up over something you can’t change because you and Maddie aren’t even going to remember arguing this morning when you’re holding your little girl in your arms. You are, however, both going to remember you missing the birth of your first child because you were too busy beating yourself up in the waiting room. Get your ass in there now, Howard Han or I’ll pick you up and carry you in there myself.”

It’s not enough to alleviate the thoughts running through his head – how if he had just held her instead, or just not said anything in the first place, then maybe she would have been just fine. Maybe she wouldn’t be in a hospital right then giving birth to their baby three-weeks early whilst he stood outside in a complete panic. But he knows his best friend isn’t joking and he also knows she could quite easily throw him over her shoulder and walk him towards that room whether he likes it or not.

So, he has no choice but to nod his head, gulping down the lump in his throat, “T-thanks.” He mumbles, not entirely certain if he means it before he lets Karen guide him towards the room.

When the other woman turns to look at him, smiling outside a closed door, “She doesn’t blame you, she’s been asking for you since we got here. She was more concerned with the fact you were right and she was wrong.” It’s enough, for a second, to make him smile, resisting the urge to roll his eyes because that sounds exactly like his Maddie.

“Okay… okay,” He takes a deep breath, more than ready to finally meet his daughter as he places his hand on the door handle, “Wish me luck.”

It’s easy to force a smile on his face the moment he walks into the room, not wanting Maddie to know he’s been in the hospital for the past twenty-minutes full of self-loathing and guilt. “Hey, baby.”

It’s easier to push all those feelings back, even just temporarily, when she’s looking at him with a huge smile on her face and her hand outstretched, “You’re here.” The moment his hand is in hers, his lips move to press against her forehead.

“I’m here, I’m here…”

“D-don’t tell me I told you so, not yet…” Her nose scrunches up and her hand squeezes in his before he lets out a small laugh, biting down harshly on his lip to stop himself from bursting into tears.

“I definitely have no plans to say that, I promise. You just focus on getting our beautiful daughter into this world because she clearly has all the patience of a Buckley.”


End file.
